


Inevitably, Things Change

by emeraldxcity



Category: Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard - Rick Riordan
Genre: Blood and Gore, The Sword of Summer Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-10
Updated: 2016-07-10
Packaged: 2018-07-22 15:59:12
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,986
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7445173
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/emeraldxcity/pseuds/emeraldxcity
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Magnus tries to cope with the recent changes in his afterlife and receives a visit from a friend.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Inevitably, Things Change

Magnus Chase killed today. He did it with his own hands, without the help of Jack. Free-for-all Tuesdays are Mallory's favorite and this is the first time Magnus has taken part of one of Valhalla's battles in a while. His friends were already dead so he had absolutely nothing to lose. He'd picked up a sword and using it and his shield he'd slashed his way through the mass of einherjar and he'd definitely contributed to the blood bath covering the field. He was covered in cuts and blood and bruises and he was tired but he was still fighting. The blond remembers his first Tuesday in Valhalla, remembers how he'd been the last of his hallmates left just like today. He remembers how he'd disarmed everyone on the battlefield. He could do it again today, but there wasn't really much a point. Instead he takes his death as a warrior would, as he'd seen Halfborn go down hundreds of times. He's fighting up until the point his body is so full of arrows and stab wounds that his body literally cannot cope and then he dies.

He wakes up in his room, like always. But something feels different and _strange_. He pushes himself out of his bed and looks around from where he stands, brows furrowing. There's a piece of paper in front of his door as if it had been slipped underneath the cracks. He slowly moves towards it, picking the piece of paper up.

 _Hi, neighbor._  
Join us in lounge 19 for lunch.  
T.J.

That was strange. Why would T.J. invite him to lunch? He's showed up to every meal with his hallmates since he'd been invited the first time to join them for breakfast. He heads out the door, seeing as he's still in his issued Hotel Valhalla t-shirt and jeans. The blond heads down the hallway which somehow seems much longer than usual. He reaches the lounge to see his friends all sitting at the table. Mallory and Halfborn are arguing over one of this dishes in front of them and T.J. turns his head to give Magnus a smile when he notices him. “Hey, Magnus.” Something still feels wrong, but the einherji moves to the table, giving his hallmate an uneasy smile. “Hey, T.J.” He sits down beside the boy in the civil war jacket, the two people across from them not stopping in their arguing to acknowledge he was there. T.J. seems to notice his friend is acting strange and he nudges him lightly. “What's wrong, Magnus? You're acting strange. Loki talk to you again or something?” That catches Magnus' attention. He turns his head, staring at his friend. “What are you... how did you know about that? I never told you.” T.J. shrugs, taking a bite of the food in front of him, which Magnus notices that the plate of food looks _eerily_ familiar, a strange feeling of deja vu washing over him. “T.J. what's going on?” He notices that the argument across the table has faded away and he turns to look at Mallory and Halfborn only to quickly clamor out of his chair, knocking several things over in the process.

Halfborn had weapons sticking out of him everywhere, blood dripping onto the table and the plate of food he and Mallory had been arguing over. He looks to Mallory and she somehow looks worse. She looks like a zombie, flesh hanging off everywhere and her face deformed. Magnus nearly gags, backing away from them. “What the Helheim is going on? What's wrong with you guys?” That's when T.J. turns to look at him and Magnus nearly falls over a piece of furniture he backs into. He reminded Magnus of Hel. Half of his face was fine, the usual TJ that he had come to know and love, half a smile that always made the blond feel better no matter what was bothering him. The rest of him was rotting flesh and bone. “What are you talking about Magnus? What are you doing? Sit down before your lunch gets cold.” He hears Halfborn make some kind of a gurgling sound that imitates a laugh and Mallory interjects, “T.J. will take forever answering a simple question. We're dead, Magnus. Don't you remember?”

The blond sits up in his bed, gasping for air as his heart pounds rapidly in his chest. Magnus never used to dream with the exception of the day he died. He had dreamed of his mother and her smile and the warm sun. Lately nothing he did could keep the nightmares away. He rubs a hand over his face and freezes for a moment, a chill running down his spine. No... no, he'd just imagined the small spot of white out of the corner of his eye. That was it, it was just his imagination. He squeezes his eyes shut for several minutes before he finally opens them again, glancing over to the door. He hadn't imagined it. There's a piece of a paper sitting in front of the door, having been slipped underneath it.

The boy is sweating as he gets out of bed and slowly makes his way to it. He bends down, feeling like he's having trouble breathing as a shaking hand reaches for the piece of paper and picks it up.

 _Magnus,_  
I'm glad to hear you left your room.  
Why don't you come down for dinner tonight?  
Samirah al Abbas

The blond sighs quietly, glad this seemed to be real life and not a crazy repeat of his dream. He moves to gently set the note down on his bedside table before heading to the bathroom. He washes his face several times before staring at himself for a long time in the mirror. _Magnus Chase... what happened to you?_

Magnus heads out of his bathroom and to the bedside table again, opening up the top drawer and taking something out of it, closing it tightly in his palm. He heads for his door, quietly slipping out into the hallway and closing the door behind him with a soft click. His eyes land on Mallory's door as soon as he's in the hallway, his heart sinking into his stomach. He remembers the first time he ever saw her she was yelling at X before they knew he was Odin. He always loved the fact that she'd yelled at Odin himself and she'd probably have done it again even knowing it was him. A small smile tugs at his lips. She'd always insulted him, but he'd always returned the favor. He knew though, that she cared about him and he hoped she knew he cared about her too. She was the older sister he'd never asked for and never wanted, but could hardly live without. He can't stop himself as he moves towards the door, a hand reaching out and resting against the cold wood. He leans his forehead against it. The room is as silent as the day he'd first passed by it. But this time he knew why. He knew the room was empty, he knew she wouldn't be coming out and calling him a creepy moron for leaning against her door. He wish she would.

He finally moves on, passing by the room that used to belong to X. The blond finds himself stopping again in front of Halfborn's door, his name still elegantly etched across the nameplate. There was no sound of battle axes being thrown behind the door, no sign of life inside. No red hair girl yelling and a burly viking laughing at her. Magnus feels a painful squeeze in his chest, his fingers curling into fists in silent fury at himself. “ _I'm so sorry._ ” He says it so quietly that he barely even hears himself. Something wet slides down his cheek, coming to rest on his arm for a few seconds before sliding down it as well. The tear makes it's way close enough to his closed left hand that it reminds him of the stinging pain of his palm, where the object in it was digging into his skin. He doesn't loosen his grip and instead moves to the last door, feeling like his legs might give out from underneath him.

Magnus looks up at the nameplate. _Thomas Jefferson Jr._ He looks away quickly, trying to hold down the well of emotion he can feel in the back of his throat. The teen slowly turns his hand over, unfurling his fingers to display the small rune in his hand. He'd taken it off of T.J.'s body before it had been burned during the ceremony where he'd watched all three of his friends corpses burn on a boat in the middle of a lake in Boston. He holds it up to the door, hearing a quiet _click_ and the door pops open. He tucks the rune into his pocket, hesitating to go inside.

It's nearly five minutes before he finally reaches out and slowly pushes the door open. It opens to reveal a large field, a hill in the very middle. There was a tent to it's left and a fire pit next to the tent. There were various other things scattered around the field and it reminded Magnus of a soldier's campsite and that only makes his heart sink further. T.J.'s afterlife was even a reflection of his time as a soldier. He'd fought so hard for so many things and he'd survived his afterlife for so long until Magnus had showed up.

He takes several more steps into the suite, tears falls freely now whether he likes it or not. He doesn't go into the tent, that's too personal, instead he makes his way up the hill, collapsing on the very top. Magnus pulls his knees to his chest, burying his face in his arms and sobbing violently. It felt like forever ago when Odin had given him a choice, a second chance at life on Earth or staying in Valhalla. What Magnus wasn't sure Odin had realized was that Valhalla _was_ his second chance at life. He'd found a family here, he'd found people he loved, he found a reason to keep going that wasn't to figure out how the next episode of Doctor Who ended or the promise of escaping into another world through a book in a warm library. They'd made him smile and laugh and they'd made him feel _good_. They gave him a place to belong, from the very second he'd stepped into Valhalla.

Magnus doesn't hear anyone step through the unclosed door, it's not until they're climbing the hill that he hears them. But he doesn't care who it is. He doesn't care if they kill him. He just hopes if they do that, they'll take him out of Valhalla to do so. He feels arms wrap around him and that only makes him sob more. They don't say anything, they just hold him. They hold him until he's cried himself out and no more tears are coming and he feels even emptier than before he'd entered the room. He sniffles, moving away from the person to use his shirt to wipe his face and nose. He finally makes himself look at his guest. It's Sam, her own face wet with tears. He can see the pain he's putting her through, can see the way she's been hurting for months for her friend. He opens his mouth and at first nothing comes out but after a few seconds he finally croaks out, “ _I'm sorry._ ” She whispers his name and then she pulls him into another hug and he hugs her back, tightly.

“You have nothing to be sorry for, Magnus.” She whispers, running a hand through his hair.

The blond doesn't speak because he knows she's wrong.

He has everything to be sorry for.

**Author's Note:**

> Also posted on my tumblr rp blog thesonofnatalie.


End file.
